RBI approves DBS' plan for India ops

Singaporean lender DBS on Monday said that it has received in-principle approval to convert its India operations into a wholly owned subsidiary (WOS).

DBS, the first foreign lender to seek RBI approval, had applied for the licence way back in 2014 to operate as a wholly owned subsidiary. The application has been pending with finance ministry, which took time to grant approval due to lack of a precedent.

DBS is the second bank after State Bank of Mauritius to receive the nod. “We have received an in-principle approval from RBI to start working as a wholly owned subsidiary,” Piyush Gupta, chief executive of the largest Singaporean bank, told reporters here.

He was in town to inaugurate a new headquarters of the bank.